Books like American Mafia by Thomas Reppetto

Mario Puzo’s The Last Don resurrects his saga of a powerful crime family whose reach extends from the streets of New York to the glittering halls of Hollywood and the casinos of Las Vegas.

In this gripping, true crime exposé, Bill Palmini, a rookie detective, hopes to take down the West Coast Mafia by gaining the confidence of notorious mob operative William Ettleman. Set against a backdrop of social turmoil, the book immerses readers in free love, drugs, robbery and murder, orchestrated by organized crime in locations like Sausalito, California. The Trident Restaurant, once a drug Mecca for Hollywood, the music industry and the New York hip, was co-owned by the Kingston Trio and their manager, Frank Werber, a self-proclaimed drug priest. Robin Williams worked as a busboy there and Janis Joplin had her own table. Sally Stanford, the former San Francisco Madam who later became Sausalitoʹs mayor, was a confidant of the infamous. Ettlemanʹs safecracking gang targets the Trident. Mobsters like Frank "the Bomp" Bompensiero, on whom Sopranos character "Big Pussy" is thought to have been based, become involved. Palmini, utilizing Ettleman, joins the FBI and the Federal Strike Force on Organized Crime to penetrate the crime scene in Sausalito, loaded dice in Las Vegas and Reno, corruption in San Diego and stolen credit cards in Texas. Then he begins to break up one of the most notorious gangs on the West Coast.

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In his memoir, Albert DeMeo reveals the conflicted life of growing up as the son of the notorious Gambino Mafia killer Roy DeMeo, detailing the hidden legacy of organized crime in New York.

The Mafia Encyclopedia, Third Edition, Carl Sifakis once again provides a fascinating survey of the mob's most influential perpetrators and personalities, including their hangouts and hideaways, their plays for power, their schemes and crimes, and their unique culture and jargon.